By Nosa Akenzua
Leaders and stakeholders of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Aniocha South Local Government Area of Delta State, have stated that they will accept, support and work for any governorship aspirant of Delta Central extraction if directed by the State Governor, Ifeanyi Okowa.
The Aniocha South Local Government Area leaders and stakeholders made this known when leaders and members of a group, Delta Central 2023, codenamed (DC-23) lobby group paid a consultative visit to them at Ogwashi-uku, Delta State recently.
A former Minister of Agriculture and Defense, Chief Chris Agbobu who spoke on behalf of the leaders, posited that it will be ungodly to tell Delta Central Senatorial District to allow Delta South or Northern Senatorial districts candidates to vie for and get elected as governor in 2023 after their Central counterpart has waited for 16 years.
He urged former governor, Chief James Ibori, immediate past governor, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan and the incumbent governor, Senator Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa to call for stakeholders’ meeting that will midwife a written and signed agreement for zoning on Senatorial districts order as they fear that there may no longer regard any ‘gentlemanly agreement.’
According to him, “we want a properly documented agreement by majority of the people so that the issue of gentleman agreement will be put to rest.
“Whether it was by coincidence, Delta central has waited for 16 years, it will be ungodly to tell them to wait for south or north to go for governor. But they must discipline their own children to accept zoning.
“When the time comes, anybody Governor Ifeanyi Okowa brings from central, we will follow. Okowa will speak for us because on Okowa we stand”, he added.
Earlier, National Chairman of Delta Central 2023 (DC-23), Senator (Chief) Ighoyota Amori in his speech, stated that DC-23 is a lobby group made up of card-carrying members of the PDP in Delta Central Senatorial District with the aim to lobby for the governorship seat to rotate to the Central come 2023.
He noted that the DC-23 is not different from G-3 of Delta South Senatorial District that was formed to drive the election process of the immediate-past governor of Delta State, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan and Anioma Agenda that was formed in 2014 to propel the process of election of the current governor of the State, Senator (Dr.) Ifeanyi Okowa.
According to him, “those who want to contest against aspirants of Delta Central Senatorial District have their argument for the governorship seat and likewise us. But we can’t talk of zoning on ethnic lines because the State is made up of various ethnic groups like Urhobo, Ijaw, Itsekiri, Isoko, Ika, Ndokwa, Oshimili, Aniocha and few others, hence the appeal for us to maintain the zoning arrangement along Senatorial districts”.
“We want to establish a sustainable system where when it gets to the turn of your senatorial district, no one from other senatorial districts will contest against the benefitting district. So the argument that Urhobo or other ethnic groups contested during the turn of other senatorial districts will no longer be there”, he added.
He appealed to the political leaders of Aniocha South Local Government Area to support the DC-23 push for zoning arrangement on senatorial districts line to enable the PDP rule beyond 2023.
He pointed out that the DC-23 is not lobbying or campaigning for any aspirant but it will ensure that the governorship position moves to Delta Central Senatorial District in 2023.